Democratic debaters take aim at Dole

Friday

Apr 25, 2008 at 10:22 PMApr 25, 2008 at 10:37 PM

By Patrick Gannon, Staff Writer

Kay Hagan wasted no time Friday evening taking aim at U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole, her potential opponent in the November election for a North Carolina seat in the U.S. Senate.Hagan, a Democratic state senator from Guilford County and the front-runner to win her party's nomination, said Dole is aligned with special interests and lobbyists and isn't doing her job in Washington, making her "vulnerable.""I'm running for U.S. Senate because Washington is broken," Hagan told an audience of about 40 people Friday evening during a candidates' forum at the Warwick Center at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.Four of the five Democratic candidates for Dole's seat - Hagan, Chapel Hill businessman Jim Neal, Lexington truck driver Duskin Lassiter and Moncure podiatrist Howard Staley - took part in the forum to help voters decide whom to vote for in the May 6 Democratic primary. The winner will face Dole in November.Neal said he once stood in an unemployment line and that more people than ever are in that same "well of despair." He was likely referring to Hagan's 10 years in the General Assembly and Dole's long-standing Washington ties when he told the audience that America is at a crossroads in 2008."Are we going to go down the path of politics as usual ... or are we going to go down a new path?" Neal asked.Lassiter said the nation must balance its free trade agreements, raise the minimum wage to $12 an hour and enact an energy-independence plan. He also said he wanted to spend two to three months in Iraq to see for himself what needs to be done there."I'm willing to spend as much time as possible to find a peaceful solution," he said.Staley said gas prices are hurting America and urged conservation and federal support for public transportation. Differentiating himself from the other candidates, Staley also said the next administration should be given a chance to handle the war in Iraq in the right way, under the advice of military experts. He said Dole has been the "rubber stamp" on Bush policies that have led to the "death of the middle class.""I would like to improve this country for all Americans, and not just for the rich," Staley said.Hagan, who has raised about $1.5 million, said she is the only candidate with the finances to challenge Dole in November. She also touted her record in the N.C. Senate, saying she was recently ranked the seventh-most-effective senator as co-chair of the Senate budget committee.Marcus Williams, a Lumberton attorney and Democratic candidate for Senate, didn't attend the forumRichard Mandel, chairman of the candidate committee of the New Hanover County Democratic Party, said he hoped the audience would leave with a better knowledge of the primary candidates."This is a way for citizens in our town to really see for themselves, and this is, of course, one of the most important elections in the state this year," Mandel said.Patrick Gannon: 343-2328patrick.gannon@starnewsonline.com

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